Parkwood National Historic site is a great place to visit for their well informed tours of the mansion, their beautiful gardens to admire, and/or at their tea House cafe near the fountains for afternoon tea or lunch. Who knew deep in our history, GM company started with the McLaughlin family. This museum is a gem in the middle of Oshawa, Ontario, that is a must visit at least once. read more

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This review is based off a garden lunch visit. TLDR: Grounds are gorgeous but food isn't worth it. Yes - The grounds are gorgeous - tons of green space and beautifully managed landscape and gardens. It's a fantastic ecosystem for bees and small animals. Didn't love how far the bathroom was from the tea house/ garden restaurant (literally was offered a go cart ride), so go before you think you really need to. Service at the tea house was alright. Despite having many staff, it felt a bit hard to flag them down at times. We noticed too that they weren't too kind to people who didn't have reservations despite having a few empty tables that stayed empty for our entire dining time. I felt they could have offered to make a reservation with them on the spot or just apologized. Not everyone knows about this spot until they are on the grounds for a walk. The food itself wasn't really worth it. We ordered a few mocktails which were wildly sweet, but refreshing for this hot hot day. We ordered the poke bowl and it was pretty good. A lot of fresh veggies mixed in the bowl and flavour was light. Good and refreshing for a hot summer day by the beautiful garden fountain. The salmon soba noodles was not quite the same. My salmon was a bit dry which is either because it was over cooked or just refrigerated for too long. It's served cold. The soba noodles did not hold well. You can see in my photos that the noodles were basically just stuck in these hard chunks. Not twirlable at all and quite stiff. It was not great.. I was very disappointed. At that price point, you'd think they could atleast whip up fresh noodles for you. It was even more disappointing that they didn't even apologize or make any offers to salvage the experience. They just didn't seem to care much. It's a beautiful place but they're certainly not a great dining experience. It is incredible as an idea though so maybe just make a reservation to have a drink by the fountain. read more

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The ground and the gardens are gorgeous and are definitely worth a visit at least once in your lifetime. Everything is so beautiful and well maintained. The flowers and plants are spectacular. A lot of people do have photoshoot or people book the place for a wedding. The water fountain is a breathtaking view. It makes a pretty backdrop for pics and videos. I suggest to go during a weekday instead of a weekend to avoid the busy crowds. A lot of movies an tv series were filmed there. The staff was limited but nice. The gift shop was small but had a lot of interesting stuffs for sale. I tried to join their museum tours a few times but they seemed to always be sold out quickly as spots are very limited. Got to book early. Though the ground and estate is a wonderful day trip excusion, their outdoor Tea House was just a so so experience. While dining outside with the beautiful backdrop seems like a good idea, I didn't expect the experience was marred with constant attack from the wasps. My friend and I had to constantly fight with the wasps for our food. The wasps just kept hovering non stop every few minutes. The staff kept saying it is the season and there was nothing they could do. Well, they finally now put up a message on their website addressing the matter that they have taken a variety of measures to reduce them at Parkwood (not sure what they mean by that). However, I wouldn't be surprised if someone gotten bitten and ended up suing them. If you do proceed with the afternnon tea, it is highly recommended to make a reservation and in the reservation, need to indicate that you are booking for afternoon tea because if you do not clearly indicate it, they assumed u are there for their regular menu. Also if you would like a table by the Water Fountain, please mention it in the reservations. Their afternoon team menu was honestly quite disappointing and too expensive to be worth it at that price tag. The sandwiches weren't fresh and felt stale, scones were hard, desserts were nothing special and also, the biggest no no is that they were serving the tea in a tea bag. Yuck. For that high price point, you would expect the tea to be loose leaf. I can't believe they are now charging $68 plus tea plus 18% gratuity for the afternoon tea set. I haven't tried their regular lunch or dinner menu so I can't rate how the food is but it seems that it may be an alternative option over the afternoon set but reading the other reviews, it looks like the food is terrible overall I would rate the afternoon tea a 2.75 just for the scenery. Our waitress was friendly and even provided us extra cups as per our request as my friend and I were trying to find ways to contain the wasps situation. However, our waitress was forgetful. They were supposed to surprise my friend as it was her birthday but the waitress forgot about my special request so I had to remind the waitress in front of my friend about that request, which ruined the surprise. There is very limited free parking so Parkwood Estate does suggest paid parking garage (located on the west side of the estate if space runs out. They also update their website frequently if there is no on-site parking on a particular day. Recommend to check their FAQ often before taking a long road trip. Overall, 4 stars for the ground estate and 2.75 for the tea house. read more

With lockdown restrictions easing up, last week we tried lunch at Parkwood Estate. You have to make a reservation online for their outside restaurant called The Tea House. I had made this reservation a month in advance. We were just amazed by how beautiful this estate is and delicious food was a cherry on top. It's like we stepped back in time. The art, architecture, gardens and the landscaping is so staggering. The stunning view from patio is just mind blowing and makes the food taste even more delicious. We had roasted tomato and garlic soup, summer chicken salad, grilled salmon and peach melba as dessert. Everything was prepared fresh and was delicious. Few small tweaks will make it even better. Tomato soup could have been more creamer, salmon needed some kind of sauce or glaze or maybe a mushroom sauce and chicken salad could have had more quantity of chicken. Peach Melba was amazing and our daughter loved it. After lunch we walked around the estate for couple of hours and didn't wanted to come back home. The views were just out of this world. We will be going back there soon!! read more

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Note: Review is only for the grounds which are free to visit. I did not do a tour of the interior or eat at the Tea House. Great...for free! Parking is also free and there are a few entrances into the property. Without eating/drinking, you're there for a max of 45mins. No picnicking is allowed on the grounds. There are several gardens with maps posted throughout the grounds, but the map from a worker at the tea house was MUCH better. The Italian garden was closed - and difficult to find anyway. "Rose Garden" had no roses to speak of, plants in that particular garden seemed quite small, just planted. Sunken Tennis Courts had no net set-up, so it just looked like a sunken, rectangular green space. The most impressive spot was the formal garden with the fountains and art deco-inspired steps/walls/stonework - very Euro! However, I visited just shortly after they opened, so there was no real ambiance to the place. Just workers watering the grounds. It would definitely be a great spot for an evening wedding with lotsa guests, music playing in the background, and lights strung up. However, at the state that I visited (not much in bloom), it was nice for a free visit. Not sure I'd drive more than an hour for it to be "worth it". If I lived nearby, it would be a lovely spot to take a stroll in the AM...with a dog or something like that. Most of the workers seemed young and they were very friendly, pleasant, & helpful! read more

This is my second visit. I loved the cheese cake. Staff are very friendly even though we waited fir 45 mins for our order but the time passed by while we are taking pictures of the beautiful place. Price is fair. Come here with reservation. read more

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With summer ending we decided to explore our own backyard and came across Parkwood Estate. Upon driving there we weren't quite sure if we were in the right place considering there was a hospital in view right next to it however once you walk through the first hedge everything changes. The grounds were immaculate, you could wander through the hedges and garden for free. At the very end of the garden is the beautiful fountain where the Tea House restaurant lies. The grounds are pet friendly and the restaurant were kind enough to accommodate our dog as well. We were luckily seated at the end of the fountain and had a spectacular view however our seats did not have much shade. For lunch we tried the Caesar salad, chicken pot pie, 4 cheese grill, hot roast beef wrap and quiche. By the time we got there ~11:45AM, they only had one pot pie and select quiches left so arrive early! The food was great but I wish the pot pie came in some type of dish as it was a bit difficult getting the filling and pastry in each bite. The Caesar salad was also nothing to write home about and lacked flavour. All in all we had a great experience at the estate and the restaurant. We would love to come back here next year and try more dishes on the menu. Side note there were a lot of wasps when we were eating there, if you have a fear or allergy to them I would proceed with caution. read more

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Very interesting place. This is the home of the Mclaughlin family that was responsible for Canadian auto manufacturing in the early part of the 20th century. The house tour was interesting and fun. We had a great guide named Janet. It's a step back in time with all the original furniture and furnishings. You can see a number of the Mclaughlin cars at the auto museum down the street. This place is not to be missed! We also went to the Tea house in the estate's garden for High Tea. The food was great but we got harassed by Yellow Jacket bees and had to leave early. This family is also the creator of Canada Dry and the Brogue shoe! read more

A lovely morning in the Parkwood estate having breakfast. We ordered a Reuben Panini sandwich which was made with pumpernickel bread and I had mixta and chip on the side. Also a Brie grilled cheese sandwich with sourdough bread that had apple chutney in it. Oh everything was so delicious! For dessert we had cheese cake and wine, gotta say it was a nice treat overall. My slight complaint was that we were seated in direct sunlight on a hot day with no umbrella. We asked to be moved they said everything was reserved mind you we were the first guest to arrive and only ones there for a good amount of time. The manager gave us a standoff-ish look from the moment we arrived and rushed over to the waiter to tell him not to move us when he started to look for a new spot. We moved our table ourselves to squeeze towards a corner that had a little shade. If this was a family restaurant maybe this would have been my last time going... Aside from that, we think the entire Parkwood estate is a gem in the city! read more

Parkwood - Brie Grilled Cheese sandwich and tomato soup - Museums Near Me - Oshawa, Ontario

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Visited on October 20th. Delightful place. The grounds are gorgeous and the rich history of the estate is very interesting. Our guide, I think her name was Vida, was so very knowledgeable - as if she knew them personally! The ladies in the gift shop were extremely friendly and nice. The gift shop itself is full of wonderful gift items. I grabbed the last tour spot available that day and so glad I went!! read more

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Location is superb. Staff were very nice. However, high tea was not worth the money. More sweets than savory, not real clotted cream. Very disappointing for what we paid. If we go back I would try the regular menu. read more

Beautiful early 20 century house. Three tours available (public areas, family rooms and servant quarters). We went in April so the gardens and tea house were not properly groomed and ready for visit, but I would love to go back. It must be gorgeous in the summer... read more

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We celebrated my mom's 83rd birthday !!! Huge thank you to the staff for making my mom feel like a Royal Queen!!! High Tea by the Gardens and Fountain was truly a spectacular view. The scones were delicious not to mention the jam and the cream. We asked if they sold the jam and although the answer was no...they managed to give us a small container of jam to take home. The deserts and the small sandwiches were also truly fantastic. You cannot go wrong with a scrumptious High Tea and a bottle of Sparkling bubbly. The bubbly was extra but worth every penny. We did not feel rushed and the staff were very attentive at all times. In fact, when we finished our Tea the staff ensured that we had a Golf Cart which could take us back to the Parking lot as it was a bit of a walk. The gift shop is a must see...many beautiful treasures...which we could not resist buying. All in all a truly amazing and wonderful experience. We will definitely be coming back again and again. read more

The estate grounds are beautiful. Took my 88 year old father and 85 year old mother to enjoy the gardens. They slowly took their time down the stairs and walked all the way to the Tea House where we were refused a table. We just needed a spot where they could rest their legs and have a coffee. We were rudely and abruptly refused because we did not have a reservation!!!!!!!! Since when is a reservation required for a coffee? There were vacant tables available and they refused to pour 3 cups of coffee. I've been visiting the estate for decades and it has always been a beautiful experience until today! Absolute horrific customer service and lack of empathy for an aged couple who need a chair to rest and a beverage!!! Yes, go to the gardens but definately a hard pass on the Tea House. I would much rather spend my money elsewhere. I gave 1 star only because I couldn't post without putting a star. They don't deserve the star I had to put! read more

What a lovely surprise this place is. The gardens are beautiful and you might spot a local rabbit or cat in them. You can also get a tour of the Estate for a fee. It is really wonderful to learn about the local history and see this beautiful building. I recommend the little restaurant in the garden. A lovely way to spend your day with tea or lunch. We went when there was a flower event going on nearby with a free shuttle. It was a terrific day and we hope to come back this year! read more